Wednesday, December 16, 2009

Is Marriage Good For Your Health?

I just want to share this article to all of you - married or single individuals :)

Is Marriage Good For Your Health?

Contrary to what comedians will tell you about marriage, getting hitched appears to be good for your health. That is according a New Zealand-led international study of nearly 35,000 people across 15 countries. The study released by clinical psychologist Kate Scott of New Zealand’s University of Otago said that married people are less likely to suffer from depression, anxiety and substance abuse.

What our study points to is that the marital relationship offers a lot of mental health benefits for both men and women, and that the distress and disruption associated with ending marriage can make people vulnerable to developing mental disorders

* The study did find that men were less likely to become depressed in their first marriage than women, and Scott said this might be due to women being more likely to follow the traditional role of a wife first time around.

* Other studies have found that as gender roles have become less traditional, with women working more and becoming better educated, female depression has fallen.

* The latest study also found getting married reduced the risk of substance abuse more for women than for men. This might be due to evidence that women cut their alcohol consumption sharply when they became pregnant and this often continued while the children were young.According to a study, married people are less likely to suffer from depression, anxiety and substance abuse, clinical psychologist Kate Scott of New Zealand’s University of Otago said on Tuesday.

And what’s the downside? According to the study, ending marriage can increase the risk of mental health problems. The type of end of marriage cited are separation, divorce, or being widowed and is true for both genders.